SOFA Chicago 2006

The 13th Annual International Exposition of Sculpture Objects & Functional Art: SOFA CHICAGO 2006 returns to Chicago’s historic Navy Pier. 100 premier international galleries present for sale masterworks bridging the decorative and fine arts, from finely hammered Scandinavian hollowware to sleek Japanese ceramics, from opulent Venetian to elegantly minimalist Czech glass. “A stunning array of art,” said The New York Times Today.

Over twenty galleries will exhibit artist-made, one-of-a-kind jewelry, from the avant-garde to the richly classic, which expresses a unique point-of-view about the maker's aesthetic, and the wearer. SOFA CHICAGO presents the world’s top jewelers whose artworks challenge traditional boundaries, moving beyond ornamentation and preciousness, towards an increasingly conceptual studio practice. Artists like The Netherlands’ Ted Noten whose renowned purses with startling cultural artifacts encased in perspex interiors like pistols, platinum credit cards and 24 carat pills (Ornamentum, Hudson, NY), have helped redefine jewelry’s relationship to the body, to culture and the fine art world. 

Activities

Sofa Chicago 2006 Lecture Series

The SOFA CHICAGO 2006 Lecture Series returns once more to offer visitors insight into both the works on display and currents in today’s art scene. Free to the public with paid admission to the exposition, this year’s Lecture Series highlights internationally renowned curators, scholars and artists discussing topics related to SOFA CHICAGO 2006 gallery presentations and Special Exhibits. The two-day series on Friday, Nov. 10 and Saturday, Nov. 11, takes place at SOFA CHICAGO 2006 and features speakers from the U.S. and around the world including Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England, Germany, Australia, Korea, Japan and China.

One of the most highly anticipated lectures on international arts is Forty Shades of Green: A Convergence of Irish Art and Craft, in which curator Brian Kennedy discusses works of contemporary craft, fine art and literature from Ireland. The lecture complements the SOFA CHICAGO Special Exhibit Forty Shades of Green—named after a song by America’s own Johnny Cash—featuring the works of 40 Irish artists. Sponsored by the Crafts Council of Ireland, this year marks Ireland’s first official appearance at SOFA CHICAGO. Similar initiatives between SOFA and world arts organizations like the British Crafts Council, World Ceramic Exposition Foundation of Korea and Craft Australia are credited with increasing international presence at the exposition.

A total of 31 lectures will be presented at SOFA CHICAGO on Friday and Saturday, complimentary with paid admission. 


Art Jewellery Lecture:

In The Everyday and the Faraway, German jewelry artist Bettina Speckner speaks about the role of photography in her one-off jewelry. Speckner, an independent jeweler, is known for transferring monochromatic images onto zinc and enamel pieces. She will discuss the role that photographs play in the intimacy of jewelry, and the contradictions and connections that images forge.

In Emerging Artists 2006, three recent MFA graduates of the jewelry and metalsmithing program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Brooke Marks Swanson, Natalya Pinchuk and Hye-young Suh, discuss the concepts and development behind their jewelry and decorative designs. Swanson is influenced by Midwestern landscapes, and believes imperfections enhance rather than detract from the beauty of a form. Pinchuk’s jewelry reflects social constructs of the body, and Suh creates jewelry and objects that reflect nature. Another jeweler, Mary Preston, lectures in Tangling Classic Lines, exploring the use of traditional forms of detailing, such as lace, in her work, and discusses expanding the discourse when it comes to contemporary jewelry. 


Special Exhibits

Six Special Exhibits at SOFA CHICAGO 2006 survey paradigm shifts away from traditional artisan media and subject matter in countries as diverse as Ireland and Korea. Not defined by their culture or geography, today’s world artists may reference tradition in their forms, materials and processes, but seek foremost to express their own artistic vision.

The Special Exhibit Forty Shades of Green will feature the work of 40 Irish makers across the fields of craft, fine art and literature, presented by The Crafts Council of Ireland. The title of the Special Exhibit references the ballad written by Johnny Cash, 40 Shades of Green, which reads in part:

"I Close My Eyes And Picture The Emerald Of The Sea
From The Fishing Boats At Dingle To The Shores Of Dundee
I Miss The River Shannon And Folks At Skipa-Ree
The Moor Lands And The Midlands With Their Forty Shades Of Green..."